


It Doesn't Matter Where You Hide (I Will Always Find You)

by Soliloquy3000



Category: Descendants (Disney Movies), The Isle of the Lost Series - Melissa de la Cruz
Genre: Alternate Universe - Dark, Carlos de Vil Centric, Dark Evie, Dark Jay (Dizney), Dark Mal (Disney), Evil Evie (Disney), Evil Jay (Disney), Evil Mal (Disney), F/F, Hadie can Shadow Travel, Kidnapped Carlos de Vil, M/M, Multi, Possessive Behavior, Possessive Jay, Protective Carlos de Vil, possessive Evie, possessive Mal
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-09
Updated: 2020-11-26
Packaged: 2021-03-05 01:27:23
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Underage
Chapters: 10
Words: 14,262
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25136143
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Soliloquy3000/pseuds/Soliloquy3000
Summary: Carlos de Vil was eight when he was claimed by Mal, Jay and Evie. He was eight when he lost almost all control of his life.Carlos de Vil was nine when they told him he wasn't allowed to talk to his other friends. He was nine when he had to resort to writing notes so his other friends wouldn't think he hated them.Carlos de Vil was 13 when he finally got his escape. Mal, Jay and Evie were invited to Auradon. Sure, they planned on taking over, but Carlos doubted they'd actually go through with it. He was 13 when things finally started looking up.Carlos de Vil was 13 and 1/2 when it all came crashing down. Mal, Jay and Evie went through on their promise, and took over Auradon, and the rest of the world. He was 13 and 1/2 when he ran from the Isle of the Lost with his friends on a ship headed to nowhereCarlos de Vil was 13 and 3/4 when they made their announcement about him. He was 13 and 3/4 when they put a price on his headCarlos de Vil was 13 and 3/4 when he became the most wanted boy in the world.
Relationships: Ben & Carlos de Vil, Carlos de Vil & Uma & Harry Hook & Gil, Carlos de Vil & Uma & Harry Hook & Gil & Freddie Facilier & Hadie, Cruella de Vil (101 Dalmatians)/Original Male Character(s), Evie & Jay & Mal & Carlos de Vil, Evie/Mal (Disney), Evil Queen/Jafar/Maleficent/Cruella de Vil (Disney), Gil & Carlos de Vil, Gil/Harry Hook/Uma, Harry Hook & Carlos de Vil, Jay/Carlos de Vil, Uma & Carlos de Vil, implied Mal/Jay/Evie/Carlos de Vil
Comments: 99
Kudos: 186





	1. Introduction

**Author's Note:**

> Just an idea that was floating around my head. Leave reviews, please, it’s very much appreciated.

When Carlos had first met Mal, Jay and Evie, it was under very unpleasurable circumstances. He had been about eight, and had been perfectly comfortable in his role at school as a social outcast. So, understandably, he'd been pretty shocked when the three of them sat with him one fine day during lunch. They were all two years older than him, so that alone caused him to be wary of them.

Just because he was lonely at school did not mean that he didn't have any friends. He was friends with Uma, Harry, Gil, Hadie and Freddie Facilier. Their parents were all friends, and unlike most parents of the Isle, actually cared about their children. Their parents also had to keep their friendship on the down low because of Maleficent and her cronies trolling the Isle.

Jay had settled down next to him, while Mal and Evie sat across from him. He put his arm around Carlos's shoulders, and Carlos would almost believe the gesture was friendly if it wasn't for the tightness of the other boy's grip. They all shot Carlos identical smiles that never led to anything good, making Carlos's skin crawl. "Wh-wh-what do y-you want?" Carlos stuttered out, trying to loosen Jay's grip on him. Jay didn't budge, just grinned wider and pulled the boy closer to him.

Jay pulled something out of his pocket with the hand that wasn't wrapped around Carlos. He presented it to Carlos with a flourish. It was a plain black choker, with a simple white stone in the middle. At first glance, one might think it was normal, but upon closer inspection he could see that the gem was clearly magic. "We want you to wear this," Jay said, smiling at the incredulous look on Carlos's face.

"It's magic," Carlos pointed out, squirming a little more in earnest now that he realized some magical talisman might be forced on him.

"Yeah," Mal said. "We're claiming you right now."

Carlos was now all but thrashing, but Jay's grip on him wouldn't budge. "What do you mean 'claiming me'?"

"It's simple," Evie's sugary sweet voice said in front of him. "It means you belong to us now, and that necklace will let everyone know."

"But I don't want to be yours," Carlos said, finally breaking free and getting up, before sprinting away, hearing the three of them on his heels.

Carlos was fast, but he wasn't that fast, and soon he found himself in Jay's grip, with Mal and Evie hovering over him. "We tried to be nice," Mal said. "But you've clearly denied that, so we're gonna do this the hard way."

Mal forced the choker on Carlos's neck, while Evie and Jay kept him from thrashing around too much. Once it was on, Carlos stopped struggling against his will. "That's the magic part of the necklace," Jay said as he let go of Carlos, pretty confident that he wouldn't run off. Sure enough, Carlos's feet were planted to where he was, no matter how much he tried to run.

Mal smiled and pressed her lips on his forehead. Carlos froze, unable to react because of the damn choker stuck to his neck. "You're ours now," she said, all three of them looking so proud of themselves that Carlos felt sick to his stomach.

When he got home that day, he went to his mother in tears, showing her the necklace, and how his actions were primarily controlled by the children of the big three. Cruella looked shocked, but tried to reassure Carlos that she'd try and take care of it. The rest of the villains were coming over for dinner that night, so Cruella asked Ursula, Dr. Facilier and Hades if there was anything they could do.

"Oh, god," Ursula said as she gently ran one of her tentacles over the magical pendant. "I don't think my powers can do anything with this. Sorry, Carlos."

"Neither can mine," Facilier muttered, his face blank but his eyes giving away his concern for Carlos.

"Do all of you constantly forget that I'm a god, or do you pretend to piss me off?" Hades asked, startling the other villains. Carlos looked up at him hopefully, and the god gave him a smile in return. "I can get that off, but honestly if you show up to school without it tomorrow, they'll just put a new one on, and Maleficent will be up my ass about going against her daughter or whatever," Hades rolled his eyes. "Wait for the right moment, and then I'll get it off. Until then, I'm sorry but there's nothing I can do."

Carlos had no other choice other than to do what Mal, Jay and Evie wanted. He got no say in what happened to him anymore.

The first time they used the pendant for those purposes was when Carlos was walking to school with Harry and Gil. Harry was telling them some crazy pirate story, and they were all laughing hysterically. They stopped when they were approached by the big three of the school, none of whom looked happy.

"Carlos, come here," Jay said, his normal playful tone replaced by a dark undertone. Carlos's legs took off without his mind's consent, and he ended up next to Jay, who wrapped a possessive, non-friendly arm around his waist. Mal and Evie both stood in front of him, glaring at Harry and Gil.

"Carlos, from now on you can't talk to anyone but us," Mal said softly, still glaring at the two of them.

Carlos tried to tell the two boys to run, but he found that words just wouldn't come out of his mouth. His eyes widened. Jay smirked from the corner of Carlos's eye and pulled Carlos closer. Both boys finally took a hint, and ran. Carlos sighed in relief, and instantly tensed up when all three children of the villains faced him. "Why can't I talk to other people," Carlos said, fighting to keep his voice steady. 

"Because you're ours," Evie said, leaning forward and kissing Carlos on the forehead. Carlos found that he still couldn't tense up.

"So I can't talk to my mother?" Carlos asked, still frozen on the spot.

They looked at each other contemplating. "Let's rephrase," Mal said. "You can't talk to any other kids except for us."

Carlos sighed, at least he could cry and lament to his mother now.

That evening, when his mother had all her friends over again, Carlos's heart broke when he couldn't reply to his best friends. Gil was convinced Carlos was mad at them, and Carlos realized he had to figure out how to talk with them. He remembered that he could speak to adults. "Mother," he said, looking right at Cruella. Everyone else quieted when he spoke. "Can you please tell my friends that I'm not upset with them. It's just that Mal, Jay and Evie said that I couldn't talk to any other kids but them."

Everyone's heart broke at that. Uma hugged Carlos, and Carlos hugged right back. He tried to tell her how sorry he was, but no words came out, causing Carlos to tear up. Hadie, Harry and Freddie looked ready to kill someone, and Gil just looked sad at the knowledge that one of his best friends couldn't talk to him.

Carlos, however, wasn't one to give up that easily. There were many loopholes in that command that Carlos exploited on a daily basis. He wrote while they were having conversations, he blinked Morse Code if Mal, Jay and Evie were around, he even taught himself sign language. Mal, Jay and Evie weren't aware of this, and Carlos was grateful for that.

Carlos was forced to just keep his head down and let them do what they wanted with him for five years. Those five years were torture for him. He remembered one time when Jay took Carlos to his father's shop, and he had a conversation with their parents for the first time.

Jafar, Maleficent and Evil Queen all looked at him as though he was a show dog. Carlos just looked at the ceiling and prayed that it would be over soon. Finally, Jafar looked Carlos in the eye and let his eyes soften. "I see what you mean," he said to Jay. Carlos had no idea what they were talking about, but apparently, everyone else did, because they were all smiling at him fondly and nodding in agreement. Carlos just wanted to go to his room and scream into his pillow until his skin stopped crawling. He thought that he would never escape.

Until he did. Carlos remembered when Mal, Evie and Jay got their invitations to Auradon. Carlos didn't get one, but frankly speaking he didn't even want it. Because he saw the invitations for what they were: an escape. Sure, they had a plan of taking over, but Carlos sincerely doubted that either Auradon would let them take over that easily, or whether they'd actually want to take over after living the high life. Nevertheless, he pretended to be sad as they left.

"Don't worry, 'Los," Jay said as they all waited for the limo. "You'll be over there before you know it."

"Yeah," Evie answered, smiling darkly. "They won't even know we hit them."

Just then the limo pulled in. Jay and Evie kissed Carlos on the cheek and piled into the car. "See you soon, Carlos," Mal said, kissing Carlos's head and getting in after them. The minute the car was out of sight, Carlos ran all the way to the other side of the Isle, where Ursula's Fish and Chips resided. Hadie was inside, chatting it up with Freddie. Carlos scribbled _THEY"RE GONE - NEED TO SEE HADES!_ on a paper, and shoved it in front of both of them.

Hadie grabbed Carlos's hand and led him to Hades's lair. When Carlos told him that they were gone, Hades used his remaining magic to get the necklace off. Carlos held it in his hands, before turning to Hadie. "Hadie," he tested, and Hadie grinned at him, meaning he could finally speak to other people. They embraced, and Carlos ran to the rest of his friends, and had the first conversation with them in years. They were shocked at how deep his voice got, but Carlos was too excited and happy.

For the first time in a very long time, he was free.

Sadly, it didn't last. About six months after Mal, Jay and Evie left, they made good on their promise. Carlos was with Harry, Gil, Hadie, Freddie and Uma at Ursula's Fish and Chips. The TV flashed, and some weird logo popped up. Carlos hushed everyone, before pointing at the screen. There was a press conference of sorts, with Mal, Jay and Evie at the front. Mal was doing the talking. "We have taken over your lands," she started, electing a gasp of horror from Carlos. "You are now under our control. This is no democracy. This is now a dictatorship. At the age of five and up, children, both from the Isle and Auradon, will be put into our programs, where they will be fed, clothed, housed and trained. At 18, they will have an aptitude test to decide their profession."

"A full on dictatorship," Freddie muttered, her eyes growing wide. Hadie, Carlos and Uma shuddered at the sight of the big three truly having taken over.

"The laws are pretty much the same," Jay drawled, smirking as he took over up front. "No killing without reason, no fighting, etc. The only new one were adding is no rebelling. Rebels will be imprisoned in these vast dungeons."

"Also, all villain kids will be taken tomorrow morning," Evie added. Carlos let out a low whimper at the sight of her. Out of all of them, he feared Evie the most. "Villains not allied with our parents will remain on the Isle. Villain kids, pack your things and say your goodbyes tonight." She grinned evilly and went to stand next to Mal.

"That will be all," Mal said, stepping forward. "Thank you, and have a good night."

None of the kids left at the shop knew what to do. They sat frozen, staring at nothingness. "Come on," Uma said suddenly, grabbing Harry's hand and making her way to the ship. "We're not going with them."

"Agreed," Freddie said, getting up and following her. They all went to Hades's lair, where all their parents were already there and plotting for their kids. "Mom," Carlos said, running to Cruella and embracing her. She wrapped her arms protectively around her son, and planted a kiss on his forehead. A glance to the others showed them embracing their parents the same way. Except Harry, but that was because Hook hadn’t made it there just yet. 

“What are we going to do?” Gil finally asked, laying his head on Gaston’s shoulder. 

Ursula looked determined in that moment. She decided that, if no one else, these kids would make it out. “Here’s what you’re all going to do. You’re all going to take Hook’s old ship and sail far away. The barrier has a couple weak spots, find them.”

Uma looked at her mother. “You’re coming too, right?”

Ursula smiled sadly. “Someone has to tell them that you kids ran away, far enough into the ocean that it’s impossible for them to track you.”

Freddie spoke up from her father’s embrace, “But they’ll throw you in dungeons. They’ll do worse to Cruella, because they have that obsession with Carlos.”

Cruella smiled sadly. “That’s a risk I’m willing to take.”

Just then, Hook burst in, grabbing Harry by his shoulders in a quick embrace, before shoving him out the door. “They’re coming now.” 

”They said we’d have til morning!” Hades exclaimed, shoving a bag into Hadie’s hand and shoving her in Hook’s direction. 

”I think they’re coming for Carlos,” Facilier said, brushing Freddie’s hair out of her face. 

All the parents packed their kids bags, and they shoved their kids towards the docks. The kids were tripping over themselves trying to follow their parents. “Ye know how to man a ship, lass,” he said to Harry.

Harry nodded, blinking tears out of his eyes. Hook embraced him. All the parents embraced their kids. “We don’t have long,” Gaston finally said, letting go of Gil and pushing him on board. “Go.”

Cruella squeezed Carlos one final time, before pushing him onto the ship. 

”Don’t come back for us, and don’t do anything stupid!” Hades yelled as they took off. The last the kids saw of their parents were their tearful faces as they set off. 

”Now what?” Gil asked, wiping tears out of his eyes. 

”Now,” said Uma, steeliness in her voice. “We survive.” 

And survive they did. It took some time, and some adjusting, but eventually the kids got a sort of schedule. They picked up plenty of people who wanted nothing to do with the new order of Auradon. They all kept busy. Uma and Harry made sure the ship was constantly moving, and didn’t veer off course. Freddie and Hadie practiced magic. Carlos built. And Gil ... cooked. 

Carlos built a TV, and managed to get them basic Auradonian channels, like the news, so they could keep up with the happenings. Nothing interesting happened until about three months after, when a special announcement with the big three occurred again. 

”It’s come to our attention,” Mal started. “That a couple villain kids escaped the Isle before we took over. They’re on a ship called the Jolly Roger.”

”If anyone sees this ship, or the following people, they should report to us immediately. The names are as follows,” Evie said primly. 

Carlos yelled for everyone to start watching loudly, and was surrounded quickly. They all sat around the TV as a picture of Uma’s face dominated the screen. “At least I look kinda scary in that photo,” Uma muttered to herself, clenching her fists.

”Uma, daughter of Ursula,” Evie said. The picture changed to Harry. 

”Yeesh, where did they even get these?” Harry grumbled, not looking up from polishing his hook. Gil’s face flashed on screen. 

”Hey, it’s me,” Gil said excitedly. Everyone rolled their eyes fondly. 

Freddie was next. “Freddy Facilier.” Evie’s voice was still proper and primly. 

”I’ll turn myself in if she shuts up,” Freddie muttered darkly. 

Hadie was after Feddie. “Hadie, son of Hades.”

”At least they got my good side,” he grumbled. 

”Guess that means I’m next,” Carlos said, trying to lighten the mood. The feed, however, cut to Mal, Jay and Evie’s faces, all having a weird, faraway look in their eyes. 

”This next one,” Jay said, smiling dreamily. “Is a little special to us. To me especially.”

”To all of us,” Mal said, hitting Jay on the back of his head. 

Finally, a picture of Carlos floated around the screen. This was different from the other pictures. All the others looked dangerous. Carlos looked as harmless as they got. “This is Carlos de Vil, and we’ll pay very handsomely if you can get him to us, unharmed.”

Carlos’s skin crawled, a feeling he hadn’t felt since the three of them had left. “Happy searching,” Mal said, shooting a final smirk at the camera before letting the normal news return. 

None of them moved for a moment. “Why do I get a price tag?” Carlos muttered, unable to hide the shaking in his voice. 

Hadie scoffed. “Isn’t it obvious? They want you more than the rest of us.”

”Well,” Uma said, breaking them all out of their trances. “Back to work everyone.”

As Carlos got up, he couldn’t shake off the feeling that he was being watched.

oOo

Far away, Mal, Jay and Evie were all pissed that it was taking this long to find their boy. 

“I don’t get it,” Jay growled. “How is he still gone? And how did he get the necklace off?”

Mal patted his shoulders comfortingly, even though her eyes gave away the same bloodlust echoed. “Don’t worry, Jay,” she said. “He’ll slip up soon enough. They all do.”


	2. A Normal Day on the Ship

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just a look at an ordinary day on the Jolly Roger.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I need people to be able to communicate with each other, so I'm hoping someone could tell me whether Hadie or Freddie would be more likely to have some type of communication magic. Or if I should have Carlos like fix a phone floating out at sea or something.
> 
> I was thinking Hadie, because I've read Percy Jackson several times, and I think Hadie could probably use Iris messaging, or Carlos like has a phone that was thrown out and fixed, but tell me if you think it should be something different.

Carlos woke up with a start, thrashing around before he remembered where he was. Almost a year away from them and Carlos still had nightmares about Mal, Jay and Evie. The feeling of not being in control of his own body still haunted him, and would probably haunt him for years.

Carlos made his way to their quote, unquote kitchen, which was really just a huge pantry filled with canned goods. Their parents had been sure to stock them with plenty of food and water. They had been able to sail without stopping at land for almost six months without stopping. Nevertheless, they were running out, even with rationing. Harry and Uma were both already seated, looking exhausted. "Did you two stay up all night?" Carlos asked as he went through whatever was left of their food supply. He grabbed half a can of peaches and sat down in front of them.

"This ship ain't gonna sail itself," Harry grumbled, spooning what appeared to be green beans into his mouth.

"I can handle the ship for the morning. You two get some rest," Carlos said, failing to hide his concern for them.

"I don't want you to be alone," Uma murmured.

"I won't be," Carlos said. "Gil's gonna hang with me." 

Gil, who had just walked in, shot a grin at Carlos before grabbing his own breakfast, a can of apple pie filling, and wrapping an arm around Carlos, who'd just gotten up. "Yeah, let's hang out this morning."

"Better him than me," Freddie said, strutting in. She grabbed a can of some weird looking fruit that none of them wanted to touch. "How nasty do you all think guavas would taste?"

"Pretty nasty," Hadie said as he came from above deck. "But considering what we ate back on the Isle, I bet it wouldn't be as bad for us than, say, an Auradonian."

As they started their usual bickering, Carlos and Gil made their way above deck, where the ship's rudder and sails were. Carlos threw out the anchor, before sitting next to Gil in comfortable silence. "What do you think will happen?" Gil asked.

"In general? We'll be on this ship for the rest of our lives," Carlos said, checking his nails to hide the tension he felt from that thought. He didn't fancy the thought of being on the Jolly Roger for the rest of his life, but it was a much better alternative to turning himself in and/or being captured.

"No, I mean what will happen if they catch us?" Gil sounded scared.

Carlos, in truth, had put a lot of thought into that. He didn't know what would happen to the rest of them, but Carlos knew that he would be miserable. "Well, best case scenario they toss us in whatever 'programs' they tossed everyone else in."

He didn't mention the worst case scenario. He didn't need to.

oOo

It was late in the evening when the news flashed to Mal, Jay and Evie at yet another press conference. "GUYS!" Carlos yelled. "Get over here quick." Everyone gathered around to see what the VKs had to say this time. Once every Sunday night, they had what Uma dubbed as 'Brainwash Evening,' where they pointed out how "better" life was ever since they took over. It was Thursday, which got Carlos thinking that this was important.

All of Auradon was being brainwashed into thinking that the three villain kids were where they belonged: at the top.

"Good evening, everyone," Evie started.

"So the Smurf Princess is doing the talking today," Harry muttered darkly.

"It has been almost a year since we took over, and there have been some mass adjustments. But all of that can be overlooked for all the benefits we've gotten from our actions," Evie stated, smiling primly at the camera.

"God, I hate it when she smiles like that," Carlos muttered, shivering slightly. Gil noticed, and wrapped a warm around around him.

"Everyone has a home, food on the table, and a good education," Mal added, taking over.

"Ugh, I hate that girl," Uma muttered. She was still bitter about having a barrel of shrimp dumped on her. They did that when Carlos tried to run away from them one day. He was wearing the pendant, so it didn't go very far, but they didn't appreciate the fact that Carlos didn't want their attention on him. Carlos still felt guilty whenever he thought about it.

"As we've said before," Jay said, taking over. "There are a couple of VKs that haven't had a chance to be integrated into our better society."

"'Integrated into a better society'?" Hadie snorted. "Is that what we're calling being brainwashed now?"

"If you have any information of the following people, then please step forward," Evie said, as the picture of Uma's face got on screen. They all let out identical groans as their faces flashed on screen.

"THis again?" Freddie groaned, right as her face popped up on screen. "I think they know how we look."

It stopped at Hadie and focused on Jay again, who had a shark-like grin on his face. "Citizens of Auradon," he started. "Former royals, children," he said, looking right at the camera. Even hundreds of miles away and he was still able to cause Carlos to shiver. "You may have noticed that we have four thrones, not three. Carlos de Vil was meant to be your fourth ruler. And let me tell you this, you want him on that throne. He's not like the rest of us." Jay's smile only grew more dark. "He's sweet, and wants the best for everybody, even if they wronged him in the past. Just think about that if you have any knowledge to his whereabouts." Jay now truly looked like the son of Jafar. "Carlos, if you're watching this, I don't know what the rest of them have told you, but know that we will find you. No matter what."

The same weird logo popped up, before Hadie clicked the off button on the TV. "Yikes," he muttered. "'Los, you have some pushy stalkers."

"Tell me about it," Carlos grumbled, curling more into Gil's embrace. "Now, who's ready for movie night. I got a couple from the oceanic waste."

As they all cheered and stretched out, Uma grabbed Carlos's hand, and pulled him into a hug. "You know we won't let them get to you, right?"

"Yeah," Freddie yelled from where she was lounged. "They'll have to go through all of us." Everyone agreed and nodded.

"Thanks, guys," Carlos smiled.

Even as they all settled down, and enjoyed the feeling of family and togetherness, none of the kids could shake off the feeling that it wouldn't last.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's so short. The real stuff is going to start in the next chapter. Leave reviews please, I need to know how to improve this.


	3. Rat Caught in a Trap

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shit finally starts going down

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The plot's starting this chapter. I'm giving the communication magic to Freddie at this moment, but that could be subject to change.

Carlos and his friends had been at sea for another two weeks when they realized that they needed to go to the mainland to get food. They were rationing, but they were still steadily running out.

They were sitting in their makeshift living room, pouring over a map of Auradon. They were debating which place would have the least chance of getting caught. "Okay, so Agrabah, the South Riding, and anywhere near Castle Beast are out of the question," Uma said, crossing them off.

"I don't think Olympus is exactly safe, either," Hadie said, grabbing the pen from Uma and crossing that off. "They had to do some pretty strong shit to keep the Gods in control."

"They probably expect us to go to Neverland," Harry pointed out. "'Cause I'm with you."

"We can't go somewhere that has a huge population," Carlos pointed out. "More people that might report us."

"But it would be easier to stay hidden," Freddie pointed out.

"How about here?" Gil asked, pointing at Camelot Heights.

"That's actually pretty good," Uma said. "How'd you come up with that, Gil?"

"It looked more pretty," Gil said cheekily, causing everyone to groan. "What?" Gil asked. "It worked, didn't it?"

"Fair enough," Uma said, ruffling Gil's hair. "Who's going out?"

"I wanna go!" Gil said, waving his arm excitedly.

"Sure, thing, buddy," Hadie said. "I'll go to, because someone needs to make sure he doesn't get captured, and I'm the most powerful one in this room."

"Bragger, much?" Freddie muttered.

"Hello? Demigod." Hadie said, waving his arms around dramatically.

"Harry, set course for Camelot Heights," Uma said.

"What's the risk of getting caught?" Carlos asked nervously.

Hadie wrapped his arm around Carlos. "Don't worry, 'Los, with my powers, mixed with Gil's overall lovableness, there's no way we get caught."

Carlos laughed, but couldn't shake off the uneasiness he felt.

oOo

When they arrived close to Camelot Heights, Hadie grabbed Gil and got prepared to Shadow Travel out of there. They'd all compiled a list of everything they needed to ast at least a month. Hadie was bracing himself for shadow travel. Carlos stopped them before they could take off. "Take these," he said, handing them both comms. "They're like mini walkie talkies. You'll be able to talk with us. Your sound will come through this radio," Carlos said, holding up a basic radio.

"Thanks, Carlos," Gil said, right as he clipped it in his ear.

"We're gonna be fine," Hadie said. "You know that, right?"

"Yeah," Carlos choked out. "Can't hurt to be careful, right?"

"Fair enough. See you in a few," Hadie said as he and Gil dissolved into the shadows.

"Please let them be okay," Carlos muttered under his breath.

Three hours passed by, and Carlos had heard nothing from the three of them. Freddy had forced him to sit and play paper football with her, claiming that his nervous pacing made her feel antsy.

The radio suddenly cackled to life, and Hadie's panicked voice sounded through the speakers. "Guys, guys! We have a problem."

"What kind?" Carlos asked, running with Freddie to the radio.

"Turns out that the three of them do weekly inspections on all the separate kingdoms. Guess what was happening today?"

"Did they spot you?" Freddie yelled.

"It's worse than that. Jay was over here, and me and Gil freaking bumped into him."

"WHAT?!" Carlos half shrieked. "Get out of there now!"

"We'll be there in about five minutes. Get ready to start quickly." The radio stopped cackling, and Carlos was already running to where Uma and Harry were.

"GUYS!" he yelled. "Jay knows that we're close by. We need to get ready to move, now!"

Uma and Harry quickly jumped into action, and within minutes they were ready to move.

"GO, GO, GO!!" Hadie yelled as he and Gil appeared on the ship.

With a huge groan, and an odd sounding motor, they took off into the sea faster than they ever had.

Everyone let out a sigh of relief when Camelot Heights was out of sight. “That was close,” Gil gasped as they all relaxed. 

”Yeah,” Carlos muttered as he began shelving the food. “Let’s hope we don’t need to go to land anytime soon.” 

“We won’t,” said Freddie, getting up to help Carlos. “This’ll last two months at least.”

”Wow,” said Hadie, pressing his hands to his forehead. “We really dodged a bullet.”

Turns out, they didn’t.

oOo

”Did they really think you didn’t have a plan for if you ran into them?” Mal asked, smirking slightly. 

”I’m just as shocked as you are,” Jay added, smirking. “It’s like I'm not a master thief, and I wouldn't notice this in their ears,” he held up one of the comms. "Gil was always kind of stupid."

”Guys, quit messing around,” Evie complained. She had been antsy ever since Carlos had ran.

"Give it to the techies," Mal said, waving her fingers in their general direction. "Someone's got to know how to find Carlos with that thing. BEN!" she snapped.

"Yes, your highness?" Ben asked, bowing lowly. Mal got an evil look in her eyes as she looked him up and down. It had been so satisfying to reduce the prince to a servant in his own castle.

"Give this to your technology people. One of them should be able to find the source with it."

"Of course," he said stiffly, grabbing the comm and walking away. Right as he got close, Jay grabbed his wrist.

"Don't even think about messing with it," Jay's eyes glowed gold as he looked Ben in the eye. Ben shuddered and averted his gaze, before hurrying out.

He had no idea why they were after this Carlos guy, but if anything Ben'd overheard them say about him were true, maybe him being here wouldn't be fully a bad thing.

Maybe Carlos could quench the bloodthirsty look that was constantly in all their eyes.

oOo

Carlos and the gang were eating dinner when Carlos's radio started cackling. "Hadie, Gil is that you guys?" Carlos asked, rolling his eyes.

Hadie shook his head. "I gave mine to you when we got back."

"Wait I forgot to do that," Gil said, going for his ear. When he felt nothing, he paled. "Uh, Carlos," Gil said nervously. "Mine's gone."

"Shit," Carlos muttered under his breath. "When do you think you lost it?"

"I don't know. I could've swore I had it."

"Carlos, pick up the radio. It might be someone who needs help," Uma said, grabbing Harry's hand nervously. Just then, Gil jumped.

"I know when I lost it!" he said. "It was after I saw Jay."

No one said anything for a moment. Then, Harry cursed and grabbed the radio. "How do you pick up?" he demanded, jabbing at all the buttons harshly.

Carlos rescued the radio from his grasp and pushed the button. "Carlos," Jay's voice sing-songed. "Did you miss us?"

Right at that moment, the alarm system Carlos installed a month or so ago starting blaring.


	4. We've Got You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What happens after people get on the ship

"Who the hell is that?" Uma yelled as she took out her sword and held it in front of her. Everyone took out their swords and formed a defensive circle.

"Who do you think it is?" Freddie yelled back as the air around her shimmered gold. "It's them!"

"Well, well, well," Mal's voice intoned as she strolled into the room, holding a dagger in her hand. The six of them held up their swords to protect themselves. "Look what ended up in our storm drain."

"Like, really, guys," Jay said, coming in through the other door brandishing Gil's comm in one hand and a glowing staff in another. "It's like I'm not a master thief. You had to have seen something like this coming."

"Glad te see yer rise te the top hasn't tampered with yer ego," Harry muttered, glaring at the boy in front of him. Harry had always had a separate bone to pick with Jay.

"Glad to see your days at sea hasn't tampered with your accent," Evie said cheerfully from behind them. "How has it been, by the way? No troubles, no storms, none of that stuff? It's almost like you had help."

"If you're accusing us of something, then do us a favor and quit beating around the bush," Freddie snapped.

"Okay, enough of this, we have a proposition for you," Evie said.

"I can already tell you, the answer is no," Uma snarled.

"I almost missed you and your rebellious attitude, Shrimpy," Mal said condescendingly. "Or is it Captain Shrimpy now?"

Harry grabbed Uma's forearm to prevent her from doing something brash, like launching herself at Mal.

"Carlos," Jay said stepping towards him. "How have you been doing?" He reached out and Hadie pulled Carlos behind him protectively.

"Keep your filthy hands off him," he snarled.

Jay, for the most part, looked amused, but Carlos recognized the jealous rage building up in his eyes. "Would you look at who got himself a boyfriend?"

"Okay, no," Hadie said. "I'm straight. Also, dating him would be like dating my brother. Or Mal, for that matter."

"Kind of pissed at you for leaving, _bro_ ," Mal said.

"I've been pissed at you since we were eight, and you made me unable to talk to 'Los here, _sis_ ," Hadie retorted.

"Okay, seriously, listen to our proposition," Evie huffed impatiently. "Carlos comes with us, and we leave the rest of you alone."

No one spoke for a moment. "Are you crazy?" Uma asked. "Do you really think I'd sacrifice one of _my_ crew members like that?"

"It's not for you," Mal said. "It's for Carlos."

"Well, Carlos is in my crew," Uma said. "So any offer you make to him is made us."

"Alright, then _all_ of you can think about this objectively," Evie said. "Give us one member, and the rest of you will sail free. Keep in mind we're taking Carlos to the palace, so he'll be treated like a prince, which he is," she tacked on at the end, shooting Carlos a soft smile that made him shiver. "And you all will be free to sail for the rest of your lives. Heck, you might be able to land somewhere. Seasickness can't be too pleasant."

Gil turned a little green. Seasickness wasn't kind to him.

Uma locked eyes with everyone. When Carlos looked at her, he could see steely determination in her eyes that said she wasn't giving in. "To that I say," Uma started, looking like she was putting her sword down. "GO TO HELL!!!" She launched herself at Mal, who was almost taken by surprise. Harry followed her, attacking Mal from behind.

Freddie, following suit, attacked Evie, who neatly dodged her attack. Gil grabbed Carlos and ducked under their dining table while Hadie attacked Jay. "Carlos, they're here for you. We'll be fine. Run."

"I'm not running!" Carlos exclaimed.

"Ahh, there's that optimism I missed," Jay said from the other side of Carlos.

Carlos and Gil both jumped and pulled out there swords. Jay scoffed. "I really don't want to hurt either of you."

"Alright," Gil shrugged before launching at Jay.

Jay dodged and Carlos attacked him from behind. Jay caught Carlos's sword with his staff. Both boy locked eyes. "You learned how to fight," he said, smiling. "Good for you."

"Yeah, learned a couple other tricks, too," Carlos said, before sweeping Jay's legs from under him and causing him to fall on his head.

"That was dirty. I'm impressed."

Carlos ran to Hadie, who was sporting a broken leg. "Come on," he muttered. "Let's get you to the evacuation boat." Carlos supported most of Hadie's weight as they hobbled to the evacuation boat. Uma and Harry were both still fighting Mal, and Freddie and Evie were still going at it. Gil was keeping Jay busy.

"Stay here, I'm gonna help everyone else," Carlos told Hadie as he ran back.

"Be careful," Hadie yelled as Carlos ran inside.

Carlos went back to see all of his friends seemingly winning against their opponents. "Come on," Uma said as she ran out. "We need to get out of here."

They all ran to the boat in the back. Carlos grabbed Gil, who was limping slightly as they left. Uma, Harry, Hadie and Freddie were sitting in the boat, ready to sail away. "In you go," Carlos muttered as he lowered Gil gently into the boat. 

Right before he was going to get in himself safely, arms wrapped around him from behind him. "Please tell me you didn't think I'd go down that easily," Jay said as he restrained Carlos from behind.

"A guy can dream," Carlos muttered as he squirmed around. "GO!" he yelled at his friends as Jay's grip increased on him. Jay's hand glowed before pressing it to Carlos's forehead.

"CARLOS!" Uma yelled as he saw him fighting unconsciousness.

"That's it," Jay murmured as Carlos slowly went limp. "Just let go. You'll be fine. Everything's going to be okay now."

"I'll be fine," Carlos managed to choke out as black spots danced in his vision. "Go."

Uma was blinking tears out of her eyes, but nodded and told Harry to start rowing. The boat rowing off into the distance was the last thing Carlos was able to see before darkness claimed him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Need opinions here: Do you think Carlos should get another necklace like the one he had on the Isle? Or should they find...other means of making him complicit?


	5. Our Prince

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's a reunion of sorts. And an introduction.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a little anti-climatic, but it's kind of setting up the events of the next chapter, which will be pretty dark, tbh.

When Carlos woke up for the first time, he was half aware and delirious. He saw blue hair and heard a soft voice humming. "I've said it many times before, Death Boy, and I'll say it many times after: you can't sing," Carlos slurred. The humming stopped abruptly. When no snarky reply came, Carlos thought he hurt Hadie's feelings. Before he could formulate an apology, consciousness slipped from his fingers and Carlos was out again.

The second time Carlos woke up, he was a lot more aware of what was happening. He was not, however, aware enough to actually think his next actions through. A boy with light brown hair was near him when he came to, and said boy was completely unprepared to deal with panicked Carlos. Carlos froze for a second, before hitting the boy on his head, hard and sprinting out the door. Carlos had zero idea where he was going, and he didn't care, as long as he was far, far away from where he was now. The boy in the room was chasing after him, but Carlos could go faster than him easy.

Right before he went through a door, a muscular pair of arms wrapped around him. Carlos panicked even more, because he'd recognize those arms anywhere, and struggled harder. "Relax," Jay's voice whispered in his ear, before Carlos noticed a glowing hand enter his line of vision and a soft hand press on his forehead. Carlos felt his body go limp, and his vision go dark. He was out like a light.

The third time Carlos woke up, he was somewhat fine. He was able to think clearly, at least. When he tried to move around, he could see himself tied to the bed. Whoever put him back in the room learned their lesson the first time he tried to run. Carlos looked up and saw Mal in the room, her nose in a book, reading intently. Trying not to alert her, he started squirming slowly, trying to loosen the restraints. He froze when a hand pressed his wrist lightly, freezing his movements. "If I let you out," she started. "Do you promise not to run?"

Carlos thought for a moment. He decided that he wasn't much help to himself tied up, and nodded. Mal smiled and twirled her pointer finger around. The rope dissolved into air. Carlos sat up and rubbed his wrists. He froze when Mal wrapped her arms around him. He couldn't bring himself to do much as Mal squeezed his shoulders and pressed her head on top of his. "Oh, 'Los," she said. "You have no idea how much we've missed you."

Carlos didn't reply, intent on trying to escape reality as Mal's arms squeezed him tighter. Mal didn't let go when the door opened. "Mal," he heard Evie say. "It's my turn to..." her voice trailed off as she saw Carlos's brown eyes lock onto her. She squealed excitedly and shoved Mal off him and hugged him. "Carlos," she cried out gleefully. "You're awake! We've been waiting for three days. Oh, Mal, go get Jay!"

"Already here, Princess," Jay said as he slipped into the room. "Heard you screaming from my room." Evie rolled her eyes and let go of Carlos as Jay swooped in deftly to take her place. "Missed you, Pup," he said as he clutched Carlos's waist with one hand and ran his fingers through Carlos's dual colored hair with the other. "Oh, Carlos, it's so great you're here now," he said as he pulled away. "We have so much to show you."

"Where's the bathroom?" Carlos asked, finally finding his voice.

Jay chuckled. "Over there," he said, pointing to what Carlos had thought to be a closet door. Jay got up and went through a couple of drawers, before tossing a bundle of expensive looking clothes at Carlos. "Take a shower while you're in there," he said. "We need to show you off, and we can't have you looking like . . ."

"A pirate?" Carlos asked, unable to hide the disgust in his voice.

"Exactly," Evie chirped from where she was sitting in Mal's arms, either not noticing or not caring about the revulsion in Carlos's voice. "I made those myself. You'll look nice."

Carlos didn't say anything as he went into the bathroom. He knew when to recognize when he didn't have any control in matters. It took Carlos 15 minutes to figure out how the shower worked, and he had to admit it was quite enjoyable. There was hot water, unlike the showers on the Isle.

When he was done, he took a look at the clothes Evie made. It was a black and white jacket with a red pocket at the chest, with plain black jeans and black leather boots. Carlos looked for his older clothes, and saw them gone. Sighing wearily, he shoved on the clothes and looked in the mirror. He winced at the sight. He looked like a prince. Carlos didn't like it at all.

When he came out, he saw that it was just Jay there, playing something with a gold orb in his hand. Carlos was rubbing a towel into his hair, and shrunk a little as Jay smiled at him fondly. "Oh, Carlos," Jay said softly, pulling Carlos into his arms. "You have no idea how hard it's been for me without you. I missed you so much." Jay's arms became a little tighter, a feeling Carlos was sadly well accustomed to. He knew that he needed to tread very lightly for the next couple moments. "You missed me too, right?"

Carlos tried not to grimace. "Yeah, Jay," he muttered. Jay smiled and pressed his lips to Carlos's forehead. Only now, Carlos was free to lean away. He couldn't go very far, but he did what he could.

Jay pouted when Carlos shied away from him. "Forgot you got the thing off," Jay muttered, tracing the area the choker was once at. "How did you do that, anyway?"

Carlos didn't want to get anyone trouble. "My mother has friends," he mumbled. "Where is she, anyways?"

"Oh, she's in the dungeon," Jay said casually.

"What?!" Carlos said, whirling on him.

"Yeah, along with her _friends_ ," Jay said derisively. "'Cept for Hades. Mal locked him up with the rest of the gods in Olympus."

"Why'd you do that?" Carlos asked, still unable to grasp that his mother and his friends's parents were in jail cells.

"Isn't it obvious?" Jay said, a dark look entering his eye. "They lost you."

Before Carlos could reply, Evie stuck her head in the room. "Boys, come on," she said impatiently. "It's time for the press conference."

Jay wrapped a possessive arm around Carlos's waist as they went through the hallways, Jay and Evie practically gushing about everything they would do in Auradon now. Carlos tried to smile and nod along, but it got difficult when they talked about hotel rooms with one big bed in them.

When they got to the place the press conference, Carlos was pushed by Jay and Evie to the front. Mal was already there, and smiled as Carlos was pushed into the spotlight. "Auradon," into the microphone. "Welcome your prince. Our prince."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's so short. Next chapter will be way better, promise.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Carlos sneaks to see his mother and his other friends's parents. And, fair warning, things get pretty dark pretty fast.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW for torture (not to Carlos, of course)

Jay pulled Carlos into his room, where apparently Carlos was rooming. Carlos tried to go for the bed that looked unused, but Jay had just laughed and crawled right in behind him. His arms wrapped tightly around Carlos, borderlining suffocating. Yet another feeling that Carlos was, yet again, sadly very used to. Carlos waited until Jay's arms slackened slightly, meaning he fell asleep, before slowly squirming out of Jay's arms. Carlos could do nothing of the sort with the locket on, but that wasn't there now.

Carlos crawled out of the bed and shoved a jacket on, before opening the door a crack and sneaking out. He ran through the hallways for a good 15 minutes, before ending up at the front of the prison, where his mother was being held. Carlos took a deep breath before pushing the door open. He saw that Facilier, Hook and Gaston were sharing a cell, and Ursula and Cruella were sharing another. There was little lighting, so Carlos guessed that they couldn't see him. "Is it already time for breakfast?" Ursula yelled. "I'm pretty sure you're early."

Carlos took a deep breath, before revealing himself. All five adults gaped. "Carlos!" Cruella gasped, astonished. "What are you doing here?"

"We were on the sea," Carlos said. "We had to stop to get food, and they caught us. How long have you been here?"

"Lost count weeks ago," Ursula said. "Are our children okay?"

"They got away. I hope they're still okay."

"Dear god," Gaston muttered. "Have they done anything bad to you?"

"Not yet. I'm pretty sure they worst is yet to come."

Suddenly, someone knocked the door. Everyone froze. "Quick," Facilier hissed. "Hide!"

Carlos ducked behind a bucket before the same brown haired boy that was with him the second time he woke up came in. "I wasn't able to get much," he started, holding out what appeared to be fruits. "It's all I could get."

"Thanks, kid," Ursula answered. The boy nodded once and left.

"That was close," Carlos muttered as he came out.

"Carlos, dear, you need to get out of here, too," Cruella said, reaching through the bars to stroke Carlos's face. "I don't want to know what they'll do to you if they find out you snuck out while they slept. Promise me you'll be careful."

Carlos swallowed a lump in his throat. "I will, Mom," he choked out. He squeezed his Mother's hand, before making his way out the door.

When he stepped out, brushing tears out of his face, he saw Jay standing outside, looking less than amused. "You snuck out," was all he said, his stony expression unchanging.

"You never said I couldn't leave," Carlos tried, gulping at the gold flash in Jay's eyes.

"I thought," Jay said through his teeth. "It was implied." Jay grabbed Carlos's hand and dragged him off. "I was really hoping that we could wait until later before having to do this."

"Do what?" Carlos asked, fear plainly written on his face. "Are you putting another choker on me?"

Jay snorted. "You got it off once, you might do it again. We're not stupid."

They ended up in front of a door. It looked vaguely rusty, and Carlos really didn't want to know what was on the other side. Jay pushed the door open and dragged Carlos inside. Mal and Evie were already there, their expressions not particularly friendly. Jay sat on a chair and pulled Carlos on top of him. His arms restrained Carlos. 

Mal looked at them, her face devoid of emotion. "In Auradon," she started. "I learned a really interesting spell. Watch." Evie tossed her an apple, and Mal muttered something under her breath before some purple sparks went towards the apple. Carlos could smell it burning, and in a couple minutes the apple was nothing but a puddle of fruity smelling mush.

Carlos could feel his breathing speed up, realizing that he didn't even get a peaceful death, he got one where he would be _screaming, and begging for it to be over and -_

Jay's arms became more comforting than restricting, and he nuzzled Carlos's neck. "It's not for you," he kept whispering. "It's not for you, it's not for you..."

Carlos slowly calmed down. It wasn't for him? Then who was it for?

Jay's hands travelled up to Carlos's hair, where he began stroking in what was probably meant to be a calming fashion. "Carlos," Evie started. "You remember when we were kids, and you were wearing the choker?"

Carlos stared. "Is there a right answer to that?"

Mal laughed. "Fair enough. One thing we never told you is that we were watching you since you were a kid. Like, a really small kid."

Carlos wasn't sure how he was supposed to react. "...How small?"

Mal smirked a little. "We started when we were five, so you would've been three."

Carlos felt a little nauseous at that. "You've been stalking me since I was three? Is that supposed to make me happy?"

"Stalking is such an ugly word," Evie said, her voice as smooth as silk. "We prefer the term guarding."

"Guarding, stalking, is there that much difference with you people?" Carlos asked, still trying to loosen Jay's grasp on him.

"'Los," Jay started, still stroking Carlos's hair. "We put the choker on you because you wouldn't've stayed away from Uma and her band if we just asked. I always loved that about you." Fondness tainted his voice, which made Carlos more nauseous than before.

"Carlos, look what Shrimpy and her friends did to you," Mal said, striding forward. "Look at you! You used to be so healthy! And you used to look so soft. Now you look all tough. That's why we put the choker on you. We just wanted what was best for you! You were so pure. We just wanted that for ourselves."

"Everything we have ever done, and will do is for your own good, 'Los. We do it because we love you." Jay said wrapping both arms around Carlos tightly again.

"Which brings us to this. Bring him in," Evie said emotionlessly. Two guards dragged a guy inside. Carlos, in truth, had no idea who he was. The guy looked up at the three of them with poorly concealed rage. "Carlos, this is Richard Radcliffe. He was a bully back at school, and we don't treat our former bullies with kindness. Just ask Chad." The three of them exchanged amused glances. "He's also Anita and Roger's kid. You know them, right?"

Carlos's eyes widened. Everything became clear to him. The spell wasn't for him, it was for Richard Radcliffe. "No, don't do that, please," Carlos pleaded, fighting Jay's grasp, which had once again become restraining. "Please, he hasn't done anything to us. Please don't do that to him."

Richard was staring at Carlos like he was a new species to him. Carlos didn't care. "Carlos," Jay said. "He's part of the reason you were on the Isle. You should have heard some of the stuff he said about you when he found out you existed."

"Then I forgive him," Carlos said, fighting in earnest now. "I forgive him, I'll even be friends with him if you want, just don't do that, please. I'll do anything."

The others in the room exchanged looks, but were otherwise silent. Carlos stopped his squirming, hoping that he'd convinced them not to do it. They all stared at him with adoration. "I can't hurt you," Mal said softly, before shooting purple sparks at Richard. He didn't react for a moment, before the smell of burning flesh overtook the room, and Richard began screaming. Carlos was also yelling, pleading with them to stop, or to at least put the poor boy out of his misery. No one paid him any mind.

In a few moments, Richard Radcliffe was nothing but a puddle. Tears ran down Carlos's face as he looked at the once-boy. Carlos was shaking, and was hyperventilating.

"Carlos," Jay said softly. "You good?"

"Go to hell!" Carlos snarled. "If you think I could ever feel anything but revulsion for someone who does stuff like this, you're deluding yourself."

All three of the other live occupants of the room exchanged sad glances. Evie sighed, sounding almost bored, before snapping once. "Next," was all she said, waving her finger at the guard.

Another man was dragged in, and Carlos's trembling worsened.


	7. A History Lesson

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We get into Cruella de Vil's history with Maleficent, EQ and Jafar. It's mostly full of flashbacks.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I figured out how I'm going to portray the dynamics of the parents of the Core 4. Hope you like it.

"Ella," a male voice half crooned as the door opened. Cruella de Vil sighed wearily and exchanged exasperated glances with Ursula, her cellmate. Both shot unimpressed looks at Jafar, flanked by Maleficent and the Evil Queen, as they strutted to the front of their cell. "Did you miss us?"

"Define 'miss'," Cruella said, smirking at Gaston as he suppressed a smile at her words. Years of being on the Isle of the Lost hadn't tampered with her ability to snark, thank God.

"Ella," EQ started, reaching through the bars of the prison cell. "It can't be comfortable here. Look at this place! It's filthy."

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but you're the ones that put us here," Ursula spoke up from the dark corner of the cell.

"And correct me if _I'm_ wrong, but I told you that it was Cruella to you, no?" Cruella added, turning to the three in front of her.

"Ella, sweetheart, we both know you don't belong here," Maleficent said, pushing Jafar out of the way and coming up front.

"You going somewhere with this?" Cruella asked, unimpressed. Ursula snorted quietly from her little corner.

Jafar's expression turned cold all of a sudden. "Still haven't changed your mind, then?"

"Nope," Cruella said, popping the 'p'.

"You'll give in," Jafar said, leaning in to stroke her hair through the bars. "They all do."

"Jasmine didn't," Cruella said, smirking at the rage that showed up on Jafar's face.

"Yes, well, trust me on this, there's no Aladdin on his way to save you," EQ murmured. "You're son's here. But you already knew that, didn't you?"

Cruella felt her jaw clench. If there was one thing she couldn't stand, it was the look the three people in front of her got whenever her son was mentioned. "I asked this once, and I'll ask it again: you going somewhere with this?"

"Play nice, Ella," Jafar said, still stroking her hair. "You wouldn't want little Carlos to end up here as well, would you?"

"On the contrary, I think that would be the kinder option."

The three men in the opposite cell snorted quietly at the look of astonishment on the "Big Three" villains. "How does that work, Ella?" Maleficent asked.

"It's simple," Cruella answered. "I'd rather my son be around me than you and your children. For one, I trust myself far more than I trust any of you."

No one said anything for a moment. Finally, Jafar, Maleficent and EQ seemed to realize that they weren't going anywhere close to their goal. "See you tomorrow, Ella," Jafar said as they left. "Maybe you'll be more agreeable."

"You said that yesterday," Cruella said. "Didn't work out, now did it?"

Jafar didn't answer, just stepped out of the room and slammed it behind him. Cruella let out an exhale of frustration once they left.

"They just don't quit, do they?" Hook muttered after a second.

"Like, really," Ursula agreed. "They should learn how to take a hint. It's not like you're trying to be subtle. You're not interested."

"Let's be honest," said Gaston, still chortling a little. "They're not the kind of people that take no for an answer."

"You De Vils have the worst luck," Facilier said, shaking his head.

"Tell me about it," Cruella muttered, running her hands through her hair.

She truly had some of the worst luck concerning those three villains.

oOo

_Cruella de Vil was just dropped onto the Isle. She, along with every other "villain", were being locked onto the Isle as punishment. Every villain. Even the dead ones. Cruella didn't get it. Why would they revive dead villains? Why? It made no sense._

_Cruella felt a pair of eyes on her as they were being transported. They were all shackled and chained, so she clearly wasn't looking her best. Cruella didn't turn to acknowledge the owner of the eyes. She was sitting with Ursula, Hook, Gaston, Facilier and Hades. She considered them allies at best, maybe even friends. "Who's staring at me?" she murmured to Gaston, who had a direct view of the people behind her._

_He looked, and snorted. "Jafar."_

_"Ye poor thing," Hook snickered from beside her. "Ye know how much of a creep that man is."_

_"I know," Cruella muttered. "Really hoping that'll die out."_

_"Don't worry, Ella," Ursula said, patting Cruella's shoulder with one of her tentacles. "We'll protect you."_

_"Slimy," Cruella muttered under her breath, hearing Facilier huff a laugh from somewhere close. "Thank you guys."_

_"Don't worry, Domino," Hades said. Everyone stared at him. "Too much?"_

_They all laughed. Even as that happened, Cruella couldn't shake the feeling of more eyes on her._

oOo

_"Out of all the women on the Isle, I still can't help but feel you're the prettiest," Jafar said as Cruella begrudgingly entered his shop. She suppressed a sigh as she walked through the doors. Three years and he still didn't give up._

_"Good to see you too, Jafar," Cruella muttered under her breath as she walked through the Isles of his shop. As she walked by his counter, she could see another pair of brown eyes gazing at her curiously. "Your boy looks well."_

_"Ahh, my Jabbar," he said, going behind and handing the baby a wooden horse. "His name means mighty, you know."_

_"Yeah," Cruella muttered, turning around. "You've told me several times."_

_"Can you blame him, dear?" another woman's voice spoke up, and Cruella turned to see the Evil Queen and Maleficent next to Jafar, both their children in the crib with Jabbar._

_EQ smiled at her. "We just want you to know who you're denying when you continously ignore our advances and stick with that octopus."_

_Cruella suppressed a sigh and continued to look through the baby books. She had only just found out she was pregnant, and was really trying to keep in on the down low. Especially from the three villains in front of her. That became more difficult to do when she saw a pale hand wrap around her midsection. She sucked a breath in and froze. Maleficent smiled down at her, EQ going on the other side. Jafar stood in front of her. Cruella paled when she realized she was surrounded. "Come now, Ella, don't you want your time here to be as pleasant as possible."_

_"I do," Cruella answered. "And I will continue to make my time here as pleasant as possible by staying far away from the three of you." When she wriggled out of Maleficent's grasp, she panicked when Jafar put his hands directly over where the baby was. She pushed them all away, and put both her hands protectively on her stomach. All three of the people in front of her froze when they realized why she was so panicked. "You - you're -" Jafar sounded shocked._

_"Yeah," Cruella said. She shivered at the rage that showed up in their eyes._

_"Who's is it?" Jafar growled._

_"None of your business," Cruella said before running out of the shop. She ran all the way back to her house, where a man was waiting for her._

_James looked up and smiled at her. "Couldn't find anything, Ella?"_

_"They know," she gasped, pressing her head to his chest. He froze, before wrapping his arms around her protectively._

_"Ella, listen," he said, pressing his cheek to her hair. "I won't let them hurt you or our baby, understand?"_

_"Yes." Both the man and the woman knew they were lying to each other._

_James died within the next month. Cruella still saw the look in Jafar's eyes in her nightmares._

_Eight months later, Cruella had her baby boy. She named him Carlos, and had him delivered by Dr. Facilier. She wanted to keep her boy hidden from the three villains, but that proved difficult when she needed to go out and get food for herself and her boy. Fastening a make shift cradle out of a shawl, Cruella secured Carlos to her chest before going out to the marketplace. Gaston waved at her as she walked through. She waved back before walking towards the fruit._

_She was shoving some fruits in her bag when a pair of heavy footsteps sounded behind him. "You know," Jafar said as he drew closer. "Dates are far better than apples. Want one?" He held one out to her._

_Cruella glared at the ex-vizier. "I'd rather starve," she said through her teeth, turning away._

_"Ella, don't be like that"_

_Cruella whirled on the man, tears threatening to leak from her eyes. "Don't you dare call me that!" She cradled her son protectively against her chest. Jafar took a look at Carlos, who was more focused on Cruella's necklace than the man peering down at him._

_"Cute boy," Jafar said, his tone unreadable. "He's a little smaller than mine was."_

_"Prematurity does that to a baby," Cruella said, attempting to walk past the man. She managed to walk away from him - and right into the Evil Queen._

_"Ella," EQ said, smiling at her fondly. "And that must be your little boy. How adorable."_

_"Fuck off," Cruella growled, adjusting her grip on Carlos and running straight into Gaston, who'd been looking at the interaction, concerned. "I need to get out of here," she mumbled quietly to him, seeing the understanding pass in his gaze. He grabbed his little Gil, only a couple months older than Carlos and pushed their way through the crowd until they made their way to Ursula's shop, ducking through several alleyways in order to avoid Maleficent's cronies._

_Ursula smiled at Cruella, but frowned when she saw how close to tears her friend looked. "What happened?"_

_"Oh, you know," Cruella said, trying to laugh. It came out choked. "The killers of the man I loved making fun of his death, and his child."_

_"Oh, Ella," Hook said, sitting next to her and grabbing her hand with his flesh one. "He's in a good place, now, you know that right?"_

_"Yeah," Cruella said through the tears. "Heard it from Hades himself. Still hurts, though."_

_What none of the villains sitting in the shop were aware was that there was the worst of the worst watching them through the windows._

_"Is she still upset about James's death?" Jafar asked. "He didn't even fight me hard, the coward."_

_"Yeah, she is," Maleficent said, rolling her eyes. "Apparently they loved each other."_

_"Well, you two may not see it, but I know how we can get Cruella," EQ said, her heart pulling at the tears the dual haired woman inside shed. "She loves that boy. And we can use that to force her to love us."_

_All three villains shared an evil smile. The children, who were playing together near the door, were all fighting for another look at Cruella's baby._

_"I think our children love that little boy already," EQ smirked. "That's good. We'll be sure to welcome the De Vils with open arms."_

oOo

_Maleficent, Jafar and EQ were picking up their children from school one day when they saw Cruella and Gaston walking through the door. Mal, Jay and Evie were required to go to school, but Carlos still had a couple years ahead of him. "Cruella must be getting him from Anastasia," Maleficent murmured, watching the woman walk through the door. She and the others grabbed their kids before walking out of the school._

_Maleficent stopped them when Cruella came out. "Children," she said, shooting a smirk at EQ and Jafar before turning back to the three kids in front of her. "Do you see that boy with the black and white hair?"_

_"You mean Carlos?" Mal asked._

_"Yes, Carlos de Vil. That boy belongs to you three, do you understand me?"_

_"What do you mean?" Jay asked._

_"He's yours, Jabbar," Jafar said picking up his son. "You have to keep an eye on him."_

_"Does Carlos know?" Evie asked._

_"Not yet, my darling," EQ answered her. "But when the time is right, you all will tell him."_

_"Yes," Jafar said, sharing dark smiles with the other two women. "When the time is right."_

oOo

_Cruella soothed her son as he cried. That day, Mal, Jay and Evie had forced a magic choker on his neck that let them have complete control over him. Hades had said that he could get it off, but they had to wait for the right moment before doing that. Considering that the right moment entailed for Mal, Jay and Evie to be gone, Cruella was worried that it would never happen._

_Cruella stroked Carlos's hair until the boy cried himself to sleep. Then, she grabbed a coat and made her way straight to Bargain Castle. She wasn't surprised when all three villains were gathered, seemingly waiting for her. She stormed in, looking at the two women and man with utter disdain. "Ella," Maleficent said, rising and walking towards her. "We were beginning to think you wouldn't show."_

_"Shut up," Cruella growled. "What the hell?"_

_"What are you talking about, dear?" EQ asked from her corner._

_"Don't play dumb with me. You know exactly what I'm talking about," Cruella hissed. "It's one thing to harass me, but the dog collar on my son?"_

_"Harass is such an ugly word, Ella," EQ said, getting up and walking towards the dual haired woman._

_"You got a better one?" Cruella demanded, backing up slowly._

_"Cruella, this really isn't as bad as you're making it out to be," Jafar said, getting up and walking towards her, too._

_"Really? So it's perfectly normal for my son to your children's slave?"_

_"Cruella, your son will be treated like a prince. Well, as close to a prince as one can get over here," Maleficent said._

_Cruella realized that this was going nowhere positive. "I thought," she said, fighting to keep her voice steady. "That there were certain lines that even villains didn't cross. Guess I was wrong."_

Cruella de Vil was wrong. There were no lines that villains wouldn't cross in order to get what they wanted.


	8. You Can't Run (You Can't Hide)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The aftermath of Carlos's emotional torture

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm pretty sure this is anticlimatic, but this chapter is kind of a gateway into the rest of them.

Carlos was numb. There were no other words to describe it. He was utterly and irrevocably numb. The melted remains of four other people lay strewn around them. Jay's arms had relaxed around him, knowing that Carlos was too numb to try and get away.

Mal, Evie and Jay exchanges looks, before Mal and Evie walked out. Jay didn't do anything at first, just soothingly ran his fingers through Carlos's dual colored hair. "Come back to me," Jay kept murmuring. "Come back to me, come back to me, come back..."

Carlos whimpered when awareness finally struck through. Jay cooed softly when he noticed the absolutely haunted look in Carlos's eyes. "You're okay. You're fine. You're safe."

Carlos started tearing up when he realized what he'd blanked on. He tried squirming out of Jay's arms, but found out that he couldn't break the taller boy's grasp. He weeped harder.

Jay was murmuring sweet nothings into Carlos's ear as he slowly lifted the boy into his arms and carried him to his room Carlos was in a daze, and found he couldn't protest. He was barely aware of Jay carrying him.

He freaked when the fluorescent lights turned on in his bathroom. The bright lights were an extreme change to the stark lighting in the dungeon, plus Carlos knew what was going to happen. Jay pressed his lips to Carlos's collarbone, pressing gentle kisses to Carlos's neck. Carlos was still out of it when Jay slowly started pulling his shirt off.

Jay felt kind of bad. The first time he saw Carlos naked and it was for this? He sighed sadly. He knew that they did what needed to be done. Mal and him had been all for sticking another choker on Carlos, but Evie had shut them down, asking if they really wanted for Carlos to be with them in that circumstance again. Evie had suggested they try to make Carlos want to be there. He and Mal had reluctantly agreed. But, just in case, Mal had another choker ready for use.

Jay made quick work washing the smell of burning flesh of his boy. Those beautiful brown eyes were unfocused, but Jay brought him back every time he drifted too far.

Carlos started sobbing helplessly when he felt Jay's unclothed chest press against his own. Nights of being forced to lie in Jay's arms, forced to remain completely still, forced to relax in Jay's constricting grasp flashed through Carlos's mind. Carlos knew that he was right back at square one. He would have to do whatever they wanted. And unlike before, there was no escaping for a few hours. No sitting with Uma, Hadie and Freddie trying to find loopholes to commands. No self defense with Harry or silent jokes with Gil, or hugs from his mother.

He was all alone.

Jay quickly dried Carlos off and put him into some really big clothes. If Carlos was more aware he would've realized that he was in one of Jay's shirts. Jay smiled fondly when he was done. No matter how long Carlos had spent at sea, building up strength and other qualities he, Mal and Evie never wanted for him to build, he still looked soft and vulnerable in Jay's clothes.

Jay gently moved Carlos to the bed, and lay so that Carlos was on his chest. Jay stroked Carlos's hair, and murmured soothingly when Carlos's whimpering was too heartbreaking even for him to bear.

Carlos didn't know what to do. He felt trapped, with no means of escape. Unable to do anything else, Carlos quietly cried himself to sleep.

oOo

The first thing Carlos noticed when he woke up was that he was completely alone. He felt relief well up in him. There was a note on the table next to the.

_Carlos, Had to go do work. Dad was bugging me, you know how it is. He said to say he's happy to see you. Don't do anything bad. Love, Jay_

_Love?_ Carlos thought bitterly. That was love, what happened yesterday?

"Hi," another voice said. Carlos whirled around to see one of the servants looking at him curiously. He looked oddly familiar.

"Have we met?" Carlos asked cautiously.

"Not exactly," the boy laughed self deprictantly. "I was with you when you woke up and started to run. Then I saw you with the other villains they locked up. Yeah," he said, laughing a little at the shock on Carlos's face. "behind the barrel wasn't a good hiding place."

"Fair enough," Carlos said, smiling lightly. "I'm Carlos."

"I know," Ben said. "Mal, Jay and Evie talk about you a lot."

Carlos winced. "What do they say?"

"You had them pretty pissed when you and your friends ran off. They didn't say anything bad about you, though. They kept calling you 'their boy'."

"Yeah," Carlos said, pressing his face into his hands. "I don't want to be here or with them, but there's nothing I can do."

"Try and look on the bright side," the boy said, grabbing Carlos's hands. "Maybe you can try to make things better. You're the only one that isn't bloodthirsty, and the only one that they might listen to. It's not much," he said, reading the desolate look on Carlos's face. "But it's something."

He started to walk out of the room, but stopped when Carlos called out, "I didn't catch your name." He laughed sadly. "I used to be Prince Benjamin," he said. "Now I'm just Ben." He walked out, leaving Carlos to his thoughts.

Carlos wasn't left alone for much longer. Jay walked in, holding a box of something in his hand. He smiled when he saw Carlos trying to disappear into the blanket. "Hey, don't hide from me," Jay chuckled and sat in the bed. He pulled Carlos out and covered his eyes. "Open your mouth," he said, smiling at the shock on Carlos's face.

"Why?" Carlos asked nervously.

"Do you trust me?"

"Do you want an honest answer to that?" Carlos bit out before he could stop himself. He froze, waiting for the backlash, but Jay just laughed softly and ran his fingers lightly against Carlos's neck.

One thing Carlos hated about himself was how ticklish he was. His mouth opened with a giggle without his consent, and Jay took that opportunity to push something in his mouth.

Carlos would've spit it out, but the taste was way too good to do that. Jay laughed when hummed in pleasure and started chewing. "That's called chocolate," Jay said. "Best thing this place has to offer." He pushed away Carlos's hands when Carlos tried to grab them. "Nice try, 'Los. Let me feed you."

Carlos froze, his mouth half open, but there was already another piece gently pushed into his mouth. He chewed slowly, trying to both savor the taste and ignore the boy in front of him.

Carlos started to feel sleepy after a few pieces. "Sorry," Jay said softly when Carlos laid limply on his chest. "I didn't think you'd sleep peacefully otherwise."

Jay spooned Carlos, his arms tight, from behind as consciousness left him. As Carlos drifted off again, Jay whispered promises in his ears. Promises of love and protection. The last one was the only one that Carlos heard clearly. "I'll never let you go."

Carlos wanted to protest, but he couldn't. He was fast asleep.


	9. The Emergence of Light Through the Darkness

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Carlos and Ben grow closer, much to the chagrin of the rest of the Core 4. Also Carlos meets some other royals and realizes exactly what was in store for him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So sorry I haven't updated in a while: I've just been suffering from serious writer's block. But I kind of have a direction for this, so I'm hoping that this will update more regularly.

When Carlos woke up for the second time, he was all alone. He pushed himself off the bed, and wrapped the blanket around himself tighter when he realized he didn't have a shirt on. He wasn't fully sure where his shirt went, and wasn't too keen on finding out.

Carlos started when the door opened and a girl with dark brown hair tiptoed in, Ben at her heels. "Oh, good," she said upon seeing Carlos. "You're awake."

"Who are you?" Carlos asked.

"I'm Audrey Rose, daughter of - "

"Sleeping Beauty, I've heard of you," Carlos breathed.

Audrey smiled ruefully. "I made the mistake of being a bit of a bitch to Mal and Evie when they got here. Now, well, I'm Mal's personal maid."

"Jesus," Carlos breathed, rubbing his eyes.

"Most of the royals are locked up in the dungeons. Different ones than the other villains. They're locked up in the worse ones," Ben told Carlos.

"What about the ones that aren't?" Carlos asked.

"Slaves to their villains," Audrey said grimly, pushing her hair out of her face.

"What the hell have you three done?" Carlos breathed under his breath.

Ben and Audrey both sat next to Carlos on the bed. "Do you not hate me?" Carlos asked.

They both shook their heads. "You're just as much of a prisoner as we are," Audrey explained. "Your cage is a lot fluffier, but it's still a cage."

Carlos was beyond grateful that the two of them understood. "What am I supposed to do?"

"Honestly, we don't know," Ben said. "I mean, you have some influence on them."

Carlos snorted. "No I don't. Either I do what they want or they go brutally off some of you royals."

"That's what they did in that room?" Audrey whispered.

"Yeah," Carlos managed, trying to keep his tears at bay.

"Listen," she said firmly. "That wasn't on you, okay? It was all them."

"Yeah," Carlos choked out.

Before either person could say anything, the door slammed open. Ben and Audrey jumped up and pretended to do busy work while Carlos turned and pressed his head into the pillow, trying to hide the hot tears pooling out of his eyes. Carlos felt someone crawl into the bed and wrap their arms around him.

Carlos pretended to be asleep, ignoring Jay crooning soothingly in his ear and his arms tightening around Carlos. He didn't move for the entire night.

He tried to ignore the sinking feeling in his chest.

oOo

Carlos couldn't pretend to be asleep when Jay started shaking him. Carlos groaned and opened his eyes, flinching a little at Jay's delighted smile. "Hey, pup," he said softly.

"Hey," he mumbled quietly.

"Come on," Jay said, pulling on his arm to get him to get out of bed. "Time to eat."

Carlos let Jay drag him out of bed, but insisted on pulling on a shirt before going to their living room.

Ben and Audrey were both working when Carlos got in. Carlos discreetly waved at them, and they waved back.

If Carlos had been looking at Mal, Jay and Evie, he would've seen the dark glint of anger in his eyes.

oOo

"Why the hell is he friends with the servants?" Jay growled.

"Even better question, why aren't we doing anything about it?" Mal snapped.

"Guys, guys, guys," Evie said, soothingly running her hands on Mal's arm. "Am I the only one that thinks this may be a good thing?"

"Yes," Mal and Jay said at the same time.

Evie smiled coolly. "Let the pup have his friends. Through that, we have the means to keep him in control."

Understanding passed into Mal and Jay's eyes, and they smirked with her. "Handed right to us on a silver platter," Mal added, her green eyes glowing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So sorry that was kind of short. This chapter was kind of a set up for the next chapter. I finally kind of have a direction. Sorry I was on hiatus for so long! Hope you like it :D


	10. The Beginning of the End

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everything comes to a head, and Carlos realizes that maybe he was wrong.
> 
> and Mal, Jay and Evie get Carlos right where they want him.

Carlos had been trying to offer small manipulations whenever he could. Ben and Audrey had given him a lot of advice on that front. Carlos couldn't be too obvious about it, of course, but he tried to help people where he could.

Give the kids a day off, feed the prisoners something that's not rotten, little things that wouldn't make Mal, Jay and Evie too suspicious, but enough that Carlos could really make a difference. They'd stuck Carlos on a throne with pride, knowing that everyone would fawn over him, and Carlos really couldn't do anything but accept with a tight smile. The only thing that kept him from weeping in misery every night was Ben and Audrey's reassuring smiles.

What Carlos was not anticipating, however, was Mal, Jay and Evie being totally aware of what he was trying to do.

"Your boy is doing well for us," Maleficent said, smirking lightly. "He makes us look more kind."

"Told you," Mal smirked. "And he thinks he's manipulating us."

"Very smart, my dear," Maleficent said, patting Mal's head. "But you may need to put an end to that soon. We may be able to find the other brats."

Jay's smile turned bloodthirsty. ''How long until we get them?"

"Not very. And once we do, your little puppy will do whatever you want."

Mal, Jay and Evie noticed Carlos getting bored. That was fair. They left him locked up in a room all day with nothing but some books for company. It was to the point where Carlos would practically be begging them to touch him, and talk to him, desperate for some human contact. While they did enjoy Carlos cuddling up to them when they joined him, they didn't want for him to be like that.

Oh, no. They wanted to see that fire in his eyes. They wanted to see that little spark of rebellion flare up whenever they drew near.

And they knew just how to get it back.

oOo

Uma and her crew were eating in relative silence. Ever since they took Carlos, everyone had been drowning in worry of what they were doing to Carlos. They wouldn't hurt him, everyone knew that, but they also knew the nature of the groups desires to Carlos.

They had spent the past couple weeks adrift at sea, in hiding from the tyranny on the mainland. They were looking for a somewhere to land, somewhere that wouldn't sell them out. Considering the price tag on their heads, they doubted they'd find somewhere anytime soon.

"Does anyone else hear that?" Hadie said suddenly, running a hand through his blue hair.

Uma listened for a second. Very faintly, she could hear a motor. "Harry, Gil, go look at what that is."

Uma knew, just like everyone else, what was coming. So everyone felt their hearts drop, but weren't particularly surprised when Harry and Gil walked in wearing grim frowns. "How long?" Uma asked lowly.

"Ten minutes, at most," Harry said lowly.

No one did anything for a moment. Then, Uma pulled out her sword and held it up. "We go down," she said, looking each of her crew members in the eye. "We go down fighting."

No one said anything for a moment. Then, Harry and Gil pulled out their swords, and Uma felt a rush of affection for her first and second mate. Freddie and Hadie readied their magic, and they all stood in a defensive circle, waiting for their inevitable demise.

Sure enough, Mal, Jay and Evie strutted in, wearing identical smirks on their faces. "Look what showed up in our storm drain," Jay drawled, leaning against the wall casually.

"Took us longer than we thought to find you," Mal said. "Credit where credit is due: I'm impressed. Which is why we're here to make an offer."

Uma furrowed her brows. Offer? "What kind of offer?"

Evie smiled delicately from where she was languidly checking her nails. "Be head of our Navy, Uma. You'll get a ship that isn't falling apart, more people under you, and a chance to have some actual fun. You'll get power and riches, which is the most deadly duo you'll receive."

"Also, if you don't take it, we'll kill you," Jay added, sounding bored.

Uma saw no choice. As much as she'd like to keep running, she knew they couldn't live the rest of their lives like this. "One condition." The rest of the crew gawked at her, but she knew deep down inside they also knew they couldn't keep living like this.

"Name it," Evie said, remaining unphased.

"Carlos works for me on the weekdays. I doubt he's doing much right now."

They all exchanged smug smiles. "Done, but just know something," Mal's grin was malicious (see what I did there?? I'll let myself out :P). "If anyone tries anything, you'll all pay."

Uma swallowed heavily. She took a deep breath and held out her hand. "Deal."

Uma had to put every ounce of her will into not having her hand shake when it met with Mal's. She couldn't shake off the nagging voice in the back of her head telling her she was walking right into a trap.

oOo

Carlos knew something was up when Mal, Evie and Jay got back wearing smug grins on their faces. "Oh, 'Los," Jay said in a sing-song tone. "We have a surprise for you."

Carlos immediately felt wary. Surprises rarely led to anything good. Evie was practically jumping with excitement when she handed him a box. Carlos opened it, and cocked an eyebrow at the dark blue jacket with his last name and the word NAVY printed on the back. "What's this?" he asked, finding his voice.

"Your new uniform," Evie said, coming forward and wrapping her arms around his shoulders. "I think you should meet your coworkers."

Jay lead the group to a huge ship. Carlos's eyes popped open "Uma?" he breathed, taking a step back at the sight of all his old friends. They were all wearing similar uniforms as he was.

"Hey, 'Los," Uma said, her voice sounding like she was holding back tears.

"What happened? What are you. . ?" Carlos whirled to face Mal, Jay and Evie.

"Your new job," Mal said, smirking. "You and the rest of your little crew are our new navy."

Carlos couldn't stop the huge grin that spread on his face. He kissed all three of the rulers on the cheek, before rushing to embrace his other friends. Maybe they weren't as bad as Carlos thought.

Mal, Jay and Evie all grinned victoriously from where they were standing. Finally, they had their Pup exactly where they wanted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Phew, what a whirlwind! Can't believe I finally made it, only took a really long time! I feel like it was a little abrupt, but that's kind of what I'm aiming for. Thanks so much for sticking around, let me know your thoughts :D


End file.
